What's Inside
by Hillside Dancing On
Summary: It's been several years since the night 188 was killed, and everyone has gotten on with their lives. But one day, Basha finds a wounded experiment on the beach. And there's something very familiar about those claws...
1. Discovery

Disclaimer: I'm only saying this once. I don't own Lilo and Stitch or any of its characters. Disney owns those. But Basha, Komadjie, Dana, Cirrus, Ayala, Estelle, and experiments 188, 189, 024, and probably a few more I've forgotten belong to me. Got it? Good!

Even though this story isn't complete, I've decided to post it. If I don't, it'll never get done. So enjoy and as always, reviews are appreciated!

* * *

"Cirrus! Ayala!" 

No answer.

"Cirrus, Ayala! Come out right now! This isn't funny!"

No answer.

Basha let out a frustrated growl. She didn't exactly like kids, so why did she have to baby-sit her little cousins?

'Simple. Because nobody else will,' she answered herself.

Basha had grown into a pretty young experiment. If she were a human, she would have been sixteen. She still had her pink markings over white fur, and her parents had refused to let Jumba dock her tail.

"Cirrus! Ayala!"

Basha raised her nose, trying to catch the scent of her cousins.

Cirrus and Ayala were the children of Stitch and Dana. Ayala took after her mother, resembling a deer on its hind legs. Her fur was dark blue with white eye circles, a golden stomach, and a little white spot above her right eye. Cirrus had beautiful light blue fur with patches of white. He looked like a piece of cloudy summer sky, hence his name. Cirrus's body shape was exactly like his father's, except for the two gold horn nubs forming on the top of his head.

To the untrained eye they were adorable, well-behaved experiment pups. But anyone who had the unfortunate task of watching them soon found out their true nature. Basha had tried to take them for a walk that day-something that should have been a simple task. The first chance the pups got, they took off into the brush and vanished from their babysitter's sight.

Now Basha was forced to look for them. She gathered her breath to call again when her sensitive ears caught the sound something coming from the beach.

It was the sound of innocent, childlike laughter. With Cirrus and Ayala, that almost always meant trouble.

Basha ran as fast as she could.

* * *

She saw them near the shore, kneeling in front of something dark and wet. Each held a piece of driftwood, which they used to repeatedly jab the thing. 

"Do you think he's evil?" Cirrus asked his sister.

"He smells evil," Ayala replied, wrinkling her muzzle in disgust.

"Should we tell Basha?"

"No, let's poke him a little while longer."

"Hey, get away from that!" Basha yelled. Cirrus and Ayala looked up at their angry, approaching baby-sitter. "Didn't I tell you not to run off?"

Ignoring her scolding, the pups each took one of her paws and pulled her over to the thing, both talking excitedly.

"Basha, Basha! We found a body!" Cirrus reported as if he'd just found a box of candy.

"WHAT?!" The second she got a close look at it, Basha's eyes shot wide open. It was obviously an experiment and looked to be male, covered with silky fur so dark it was almost black (though on closer inspection, you could see it was midnight blue.) The fur of his chest and stomach was several shades lighter. He had the typical experiment nose, but his ears, hanging over his back, resembled those of a rabbit and not a bat. His long tail ended in a set of fins. He had a set of gills on each side of his neck, though they were hidden against his fur. And each of his four webbed paws was equipped with long, deadly looking, silver claws.

Basha knelt down besides his supine form and pressed an ear to his chest. Amazingly, she could still hear his heart beating!

"Can we keep it? I bet Lilo could reanimate it and make it our servant!" Ayala suggested.

Basha looked sternly down at the little pups. "First of all, Lilo cannot reanimate ANYTHING. Second of all, she wouldn't because this is an experiment like you and me. And third of all, he isn't dead!" She quickly hoisted the experiment onto her back without any difficulty. Then she spoke to the twins, trying to keep her voice calm. "Now come on, we need to take him back to your house. If we hurry, maybe Jumba can save him."

With that, she started running as fast as she could towards the Pelekai house. Cirrus and Ayala followed her, trying to help by holding up the experiment's dragging tail.

* * *

Twelve minutes later and panting for breath, Basha burst through the dog-door, still carrying the unconscious experiment. 

"Someone help me!" she cried out. Panic began to rise in her mind. What if nobody was home?

Thankfully, she heard the sound of feet a moment later. Soon Pleakley, Jumba, and Stitch appeared. They all wore confused expressions that faded when they saw the experiment Basha was carrying.

Basha set him down on the floor and turned to Jumba. "I think he's hurt. Can you help him?"

At first, nobody answered. They just stared, looking completely shocked. Then-

"AHHH!! Basha, do you realize who that is?" Pleakley screamed. When all he got from Basha was a raised eyebrow, he continued. "That's experiment 188, the little monster who almost killed your mother! Finish him off now before he wakes up!" Pleakley grabbed the nearest heavy object, which happened to be a vase. He was about to bring it down on the experiment's head when Jumba gently stayed his hand, still looking as if he'd seen a ghost.

"This is not 188," Jumba said simply. Without another word, he gathered the experiment up in his arms and headed into his lab. The remaining three exchanged worried glances.

"What happened, Basha?" Stitch asked.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "Cirrus and Ayala-oh, by the way, they're playing outside-they found him on the beach. Do you know who he is?"

"I don't know," Stitch replied. "I don't remember ever seeing him in the lab."

Pleakley shook his head. "I still don't trust him. Anything that looks that much like 188 can only be reeking of evil!"

* * *

Jumba refused to let anyone in until the experiment had awoke, saying that too many people would cause it to panic. 

Basha, Stitch, and Pleakley now sat around the entrance to the lab, exchanging theories on the mysterious creature that ranged from logical to downright strange.

"Maybe he's an experiment from someone else's lab," Stitch suggested.

"Or maybe he's a fish that got into some radioactive waste and mutated!"

"You've been hanging around Lilo too much, Basha. I still think he's one of Jumba's secret experiments that's going to break out and slit all our throats while we sleep!" Pleakley said.

"You are all wrong," came a voice from the door. There stood Jumba, looking grim. He beckoned them to follow him and all four went into the lab. The creature was awake now, contained in a reinforced, soundproof glass cage. His large eyes darted wildly, looking for a chance to escape. Basha was instantly angered at his treatment.

"Jumba, why is he in a cage? He didn't do anything!" she protested.

"Because, my little one, he has instinct for to kill anythink he sees," the scientist replied.

"So he's an experiment?" Pleakley asked.

"Vell, yes and no. I had stinkink suspicion of who he vas, and ran DNA test. Look here." Jumba turned to a computer-type machine with what looked like a funnel on the top. There on the screen, along with some Turian words, were two pictures, each accompanied by the male or female symbol. One showed an experiment with fur in different shades of blue, fins instead of extra arms, two finlike crests instead of ears, webbed paws, and a mermaid tail. But the other picture everyone recognized instantly-everyone save Basha. The dark purple eyes of experiment 188, glaring and full of hate, stared out at them from the computer.

Everyone looked at the picture, then at the strange experiment in the capsule. Even though his eyes were a brilliant shade of blue, they still carried that deadly flame. Slowly, the eyes of everyone else turned to Jumba.

He nodded darkly. "Yes, my friends. This is the son of experiment 188."

To be continued...


	2. Komadjie, the stranger

_To lead by example is difficult when you're a follower of fear--T. Sachs_

* * *

"That's impossible!" Stitch cried. "How could 188 have a son?  
  
"Very simple, 626," Jumba replied with a trace of sarcasm. "When mommy experiment and daddy experiment are loving each other very much, they-"   
  
"You know that's not what he meant!" Basha interrupted angrily. "Just tell us what that thing is!"  
  
Jumba sat down in a large chair and gave a heavy sigh. "Is long story. All started when I created first amphibious soldier-experiment 189. She could survive under the water long as needed, or fight on land. After fiasco with 188, I kept her caged in room for dangerous experiments-just temporarily, for to be sure she would not harm me. Let me tell you, that tail will be breaking your back with one blow!" Here he brought his huge hand down on a pencil. It snapped in half like a twig, and Jumba gave a short, evil laugh before continung his story. "But I made mistake of putting 189 in cage next to 188. Even after she was allowed free roam of lab, 189 kept sneaking back for to visit 188. Somehow, she unlocked cage one night and..." He trailed off uncertainly.  
  
"Oh no," Pleakley said. "He killed her, didn't he?"  
  
"Oh no. I am actually believing 188 had no desire for to harm 189. And when she became pregnant, I knew right avay who father was. Here is where story gets confusing. One morning I found 188 out of cage, caught in evil genius air vent trap. When I pulled him out, he said," and here Jumba did a fair imitation of 188's gruff voice," 'I should have known. You say I'm your greatest creation yet, but you won't give me the one thing I need most.'"  
  
"And where was 189?" Stitch asked.   
  
"189 was gone. I do not know where she is, or why they tried to escape," Jumba said.   
  
There was another uncomfortable silence. No one knew if they should pity 188, or what to say to Jumba-his expression gave no clue as to what he wanted to hear. Basha finally stood up and walked slowly over to the cage containing the creature. He stopped casting terrified glances around the room and stared at her through narrowed eyes; she stared back. The two experiments studied each other through the glass for a long time, as if sizing each other up.  
  
"Why don't you try talking to him?" Basha inquired, still looking at the creature.   
  
Jumba placed a hand on his chin, considering her question. He had his doubts that the experiment could possibly be safe, but decided to give him a chance. He reached over and selected a small green button. The glass container was lifted up into the ceiling, leaving the strange creature free. Everyone held their breaths. But instead of attacking or bolting for the door, he just looked suspicously around everyone, as if they were stains on his pelt.  
  
"Who are you all and why are you keeping me here?" he finally asked. His voice made it clear he was young, probably Basha's age.   
  
"Um...hi!" she told him, choosing her words carefully. "I'm Basha, that's my uncle Stitch, that's our friend, Pleakley-"  
  
"Don't tell him my name!" Pleakley screeched, though inside he was deeply grateful Basha hadn't revealed his first name.  
  
"And over this Jumba Jookiba. He created your parents and mine."  
  
The creature folded his arms and glared at Jumba. "My mom told me she was created by some pathetic fatso. She said he's the reason I don't have a father. Are you that fatso?"   
  
Jumba's face was twisted with rage, but he didn't speak-it looked like he was using all his energy not to strangle the creature.  
  
"Jumba saved your life, you know," Stitch scolded. "You were passed out on the beach when Basha found you and brought you here."  
  
Having someone on his side seemed to calm Jumba down a bit, though he spoke through gritted teeth. "He was in no danger-just nasty bump on head. Evil genius experiments are built solid and so are evil genius experiment children."   
  
"Fascinating," the creature said, rolling his eyes.  
  
"What's your name?" Basha asked, trying to change the subject. "How did you get here?"   
  
The creature once again turned his attention to her. "My name is Komadjie. I've lived my life on the planet Keehar with my mother-"  
  
"189 is alive?" Jumba interuptted.  
  
"If you're talking about mom, she died not long ago. That's when I left. I saw this one had a lot of water, so I came here. The last thing I remember is crashing into the ocean. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go find my ship and get off this stinking rock."  
  
Komadjie hopped lightly down onto the floor and started walking towards the exit. But before he could get two feet, Jumba's huge hand siezed him by the tail, jerking him up into the air.  
  
"Oh no you don't!"   
  
It happened so fast. Before Komadjie could fight back or even say a word, a bright red collar was clipped around his neck and he was back on the ground again. He clawed and pulled at it like a wild animal. Though it wasn't uncomfortable, it was securlely fastened with a lock and impossible to remove. Komadjie glared up at Jumba with unimmaginable hate.  
  
"What did you do to me?!"  
  
The alien creator lifted up a small, round, silver something that looked like some kind of remote control. In the center was a large button, the color of which matched the collar.   
  
"This is evil genius shock collar. I press this button, you get mild electrical shock," Jumba told him. Like so."  
  
Click.  
  
Pain unlike any Komadjie had ever known shot through him, starting from his collar and spreading like wildfire to every nerve in his body. This was mild? Then, as quickly as the pain had come, it vanished, leaving the young experiment breathless on his hands and knees.  
  
Jumba nodded in satisfaction. "That is what will happen if you mishbehave. I am not trusting you, Komadjie."  
  
Komadjie's look of hate change to disbelief. "Why not? You don't even know me!"  
  
Jumba ignored him. Instead he gave Pleakley, Stitch, and Basha a stern glare that said plainly said "nobody is to tell him the truth." Though they where suprised at his sudden cruelty, they trusted his judgment and nodded.   
  
"Good," Jumba went on. "Now, we are needing to be keeping eye on him. Any volunters?"  
  
The three looked at each other uncomfortably. Stitch slowly backed towards the door.  
  
"That reminds me," he said nervously. "I have to go find my kids. They're probably playing with matches or knocking over lamps. Yes, that's it!" He quickly ran out the door and back towards the house, eager to tell everyone what had happened.   
  
That left Pleakley and Basha. And seeing how the former reacted to Komadjie, Basha knew what she had to do.   
  
"I'll take him," she said quietly.   
  
Jumba nodded and handed her the remote control. "If he is doing ANYTHING dangerous, just press that button. Understand?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Good. You can go now." He turned to Komadjie, who understandably looked furious. Jumba's voice was stern. "And you do whatever she tells you."   
  
The two young experiments left the lab without another word. Komadjie walked a good distance behind Basha, on all fours with his head hanging low, looking like the prisoner he was.   
  
Jumba watched their retreating forms from the window even after they were gone, the events of that night several years ago flooding his mind. As 188 had breathed his last breath, it seemed the whole story was over. To Jumba, Komadjie was a punch that had come flying out of the past to hit him in the back of the head, just when he'd been at his most content.   
  
Presently, Pleakley came up beside him. "Why can't we tell Komadjie what happened-I mean, doesn't he have a right to know?"  
  
"Hm? What?" Jumba stammered, jerked out of his train of thought.  
  
"Komadjie. Why can't we tell him the story?"  
  
"Because I do not want to be telling him his father was bloodthirsty murderer, and I had to kill him."  
  
Pleakley looked outraged. "So you're going to keep all this from him just because you don't want to look like the bad guy?!"  
  
Jumba narrowed his eyebrows. "As I am recalling, you fired gun too. Maybe we should tell Komadjie that?"  
  
"No! I mean yes! I mean-" Pleakley was trapped. His fear of possibly being gutted overrode his sense of honesty. Giving it up, he turned to stare out the window. "You know, I only went on that monster hunt to protect you."   
  
Jumba was unable to hide a smile. "I am not doubting that you did, my little one-eyed one."

* * *

Basha had a scattered family. Each of her parents lived with a human "owner." As a result, the three found themselves bouncing between houses. As a matter of fact, they would be joining at the library the very next day. But for the night, Basha was staying with her father and Kara-and that's where she took Komadjie. The house was completley dark and probably locked, but the dog door allowed them to get in easily.   
  
Komadjie had mixed feelings. All his life he'd lived in the ocean. Now he'd not only been thrown out of it, but he was being treated like a criminal for no apparent reason. Still, he couldn't help but stare at everything on this strange new planet. He had to fight the temptation run away from Basha and explore it all.  
  
"My dad and Kara went out for the day, and they won't be back until late," Basha said simply when they reached the upstairs. "Don't worry if you hear them come in."  
  
Instead of answering, Komadjie just stared at her. The expression on his face was unreadable, but it didn't look friendly and Basha felt her heart speeding up. Suddenly, Komadjie turned and slunk into the shadows of the hall.   
  
Shocker remote held tightly in her paw, Basha backed up towards her room (an old storage closet, perfect for her size). Once safely inside, she shut the door and locked it, then climbed into the dog bed she slept in.   
  
'What have I gotten myself into?'  
  
Basha pulled the blanket over her head as though it alone could protect her from the outside world. And while she didn't completley believe Komadjie was capable of murder, she couldn't help but notice the sounds of talons clicking against the floor as he wandered the house.  
  
to be continued... 


	3. The Next Morning

**A/N: **Important author's note to follow!

* * *

A piercing scream woke Basha early the next morning. At first she shrugged it off, thinking it was just her father seeing a spider. Then the previous day's events came creeping back into her mind, and she leapt out of bed.

With the shock remote in her paw, she tore down the hallway toward the bathroom, where she judged the scream was coming from. A dozen terrible thoughts filled her mind-she imagined a body slashed beyond recognition, lying in a pool of blood. She threw open the door to the bathroom...

And almost laughed.

Komadjie clung to the rail of the shower curtain for dear life, looking like some bizarre gargoyle.

Below stood Kara, wearing only a towel wrapped around her waist and brandishing a toilet

brush at him. Both screamed bloody murder. As soon as he saw Basha, Komadjie leapt from the bar and down onto the sink. His jump was agile – unfortunatly, his heavy rudder of a tail wasn't. It sent assorted toothbrushes and soaps flying onto the floor, just as its owner jumped off the sink and scampered behind Basha for protection. There he stood cringing, ears pulled tight behind his head.

"ENOUGH!" Basha screeched. Immediately there was a dead silence in the room and only the heaving panting from all three parties could be heard. With a flicker of relief, she continued. "Ok...what in the name of any and all gods is going on here?"

One hand holding her towel in a death grip around her waist, Kara pointed an accusing finger at Komadjie and told her side of the story in a very shaky voice. "I just came in to take a shower and found that THING waiting for me in the tub!"

Komadjie poked his head out form behind his protector, a good deal bolder. "I was sleeping, you crazy bitch! Your planet is dry and your house smells bad-where else was I supposed to do it? Y'just started hitting me with that brush!"

"I don't care where you sleep, just not in the place where I...stand up naked everyday!"

"Whatever. Speaking of which, why don't you put some clothes on? No one wants to see that."

This had gone far enough. Basha liked Komadjie well enough, but she had no intention of letting him insult her puppyhood friend. Down went her claw on the red button and, the next second, down went Komadjie, an agonized cry forcing its way out of his throat. But once again the pain didn't last very long at all, and the young experiment was back on his feet in sulking silence. Basha turned away from him, paws on her hips.

"See, Kara? I can control him. He's perfectly harmless."

She didn't see her charge shaking with ill-concealed fury.

Kara seemed to have no interest in learning his name or why he was there. As she massaged her temples, the only thing evident in her expression was relief, the knowledge that she wasn't going to be shredded to bits by this strange creature. She shooed the pups off into the hall with a vague hand gesture, locking the door after them. From inside, they could hear the shower turning on with a sense of finality.

Basha heaved a long sigh, running her claws through her head fur, gouging pink markings as she went. Ten minutes into the morning and already Komadjie had gotten into trouble...this day did not have the makings of being a good one.

"You want something to eat?" she asked at last.

Before he even spoke, Komadjie made it perfectly clear that she'd said the wrong thing. His eyes narrowed, ears pinning back in an expression of animalistic irritation. "Don't patronize me. I don't want your help," he growled. As he went on, he cocked his neck to the side, exposing the collar that stood out against his fur like a bleeding cut. "I've seen the cost."

Basha could not meet his accusing gaze directly, but her tone was no less sharp for it. "I didn't ask to babysit you, you know. Maybe if you'd be a little more trustworthy, I wouldn't have to."

"Don't even talk to me. You make me so sick, I can't stand to look at you-I'm afraid of what I might do," Komadjie spat, giving the wall a venom-filled glare that was meant for Basha. He didn't see the shocked look on her face as she let the last remark settle in.

A simple insult, or something more? Maybe it was best to let it slide for now.

They headed down the narrow stairway in frosty silence. Normally, Basha never walked on the high, blue carpeted steps like a normal person, opting to take them two at a time, slide down the railing, or even climb on the walls, but she was not in the mood for playing today. Komadjie walking behind her, in the perfect position to push her down, was more of a concern.

On the way to the kitchen, they passed the living room, which Kara had kept just at the level of "clean enough" as long as anyone had known her. The books on the bookshelf were intermingled with magazines, there were a few crumbled chocolate wrappers on the coffee table, and there was duct tape around the leg of an armchair. And, like a fluffy aquamarine cherry topping off this slightly irregular cake of a room, Ozzy was fast asleep on top of the TV, head pillowed on a marshmallow sandwich.

'Good,' Basha thought. With the way the morning was going, she wasn't too keen on having Komadjie meet her father yet. Best to soften the soil before planting the seeds, and that's exactly that they were going to the kitchen to do.

When they arrived, Basha hopped up onto the smooth, dark green countertop and began digging around. When he realized she was going to be busy cooking for a while, Komadjie immediately found a pile of dishtowels and flopped down on it for a brief nap.


	4. What happened after, and my thanks

Hello, everyone.

As you've probably all surmised by now, given that it's been about eight years since the last update, this story is going to go unfinished. I've drifted too far from the Lilo and Stitch fandom to continue it, save for this last chapter - which I only just managed to have recovered from my ancient, crashed computer this year.

That said, I've gotten more than one PM from people who do, in fact, like it.

So here's my compromise, far less than such fantastic readers deserve...a summary of how "What's Inside" would have continued, to the best of my recollection.

Basha was going to start making egg sandwiches (the way daddy taught her to, naturally) until Ozzy woke up and came in. Komadjie would have gone outside, not eager

to meet anymore "new friends", and a conversation about the whole situation would have ensued between father and daughter. I honestly wish I could remember what Ozzy said in detail, because he was a joy to write as; likely, it was just expressing concern for Basha.)

Nonetheless, Basha's got to stay with Komadjie. When he stormed off towards the beach soon after this, she followed him, and watched as he pulled a ruined spacecraft up from the bottom of the sea and began scraping marine life off of it. He vowed to fix it and return to Keehar. Thus begans a bizarre daily routine of Komadjie fixing his ship every morning and Basha accompanying him. To her credit, maybe she tried to help him...let's say she did. She was something of an insensitive load in this story.

Also, I think she fell in the water. And he saved her. Or something. She took off the shock collar, and it's at this point that the two started to become akwardly attracted to

one another, because it was just that kind of story.

At some point in time, Komadjie got to meet Estelle. Her ear was still shredded, leg still crippled, and she walked with the use of a very small makeshift cane (that I think had spider legs. It was courtesy of Jumba and kind of nifty). She was wary of Komadjie, but at the same time, less hostile to him than everyone else is. Mostly, she was just exhausted from years of hindsight. It's in inquiring as to the details of how she became injured that Komadjie learned more about his

father.

Finally, he would go to confront Jumba directly. Jumba would explain that 188's programming was to be the ultimate interplanetary assassin, a born killer. He also had no idea how genetic this trait was or wasn't, but had reason to suspect the former, and so tells Komadjie flat out that

he can't help being completely dangerous. Komadjie was, oddly enough, unhappy with this

ruling. A nasty tangle would have broken out.

How Basha got caught in the middle of this and hurt, Heaven only knows. But she did.

Pretty badly, too. Komadjie panicked and fled.

Now, there was a scene here, where just to round out the cliches, Komadjie has a

completely bizarre vision of speaking to his father in a dark room. Stranger still because

it doesn't offer any real resolution...Komadjie simply sees a pair of violet eyes before him in his sleep, and hears a voice. It certainly doesn't tell him to return to Basha.

Buut, return to Basha he does.

She's hurt, but doesn't believe it was Komadjie's intention to harm her. She loves him anyway, and he decides that his future is still uncertain enough to be all his - genes or no genes, he's going to do his damndest to live as himself.

They fix the ship, fly away together, settle on a planet, and have a daughter named Briar. A hodgepodge of both their colors, and their parents' colors. Take that, Gergory Mendel.

If I were to sit down and finish "What's Inside" today, I would change...so many, many things, but particularly that ending. Komadjie would have been unable to reconcile his and Basha's differences, broken things off, and gone off on his own...or else there would have been no overt romance at all.

And that would have been the story. Trite, akward, but you know what? After some of the wonderful responses it's received, I wish I could give it to you all in page after page of glowing detail. Years ago, you made a young writer very happy, and deserve the same in tenfold. As is, I can only offer the little bit of closure that comes with knowing "Ohhh, so THAT'S how that thing ended", and my deepest apologies.

Thank you all so very, very much.


End file.
